Huskers Fall in Final Minutes at No. 6/5 Oklahoma, 72-61

Norman, Okla. --- The Nebraska basketball team did everything it could to pressure No. 6/5 Oklahoma into the final minute but came up just short as the Huskers dropped a 72-61 contest against the Sooners in the Lloyd Noble Center on Wednesday night.

After a hot first half shooting from the field, Nebraska cooled off in the second frame by hitting just 31 percent after the intermission as OU outscored Nebraska 40-23 to take the 11-point victory. Oklahoma scored an opponent season high by hitting its free throws down the stretch, topping Nebraska’s previous opponent high of 66 points by UMBC at home.

The Huskers entered the game as the No. 2 scoring defense in the country by allowing 55.8 points per game while OU was one of the nation’s top scoring units by picking up more than 79 points per game.

National player of the year candidate Blake Griffin led the way for Oklahoma, posting 27 points and 18 rebounds. He scored the majority of his points in the second half as OU hit 53.8 percent from the field following intermission.

Oklahoma started the second half on a tear, outscoring NU 11-4 over the first four minutes to pull within one. OU had trailed by six at the break.

Paul Velander then hit a 3-pointer for the Huskers to give NU a four-point cushion, 45-41. OU went back ahead, 53-51, on Griffin’s dunk off a lob from Tony Crocker at the top of the key before Velander answered one more time.

The senior from Blacksburg, Va., pulled NU even at 53-53 with 8:27 to play and Nebraska had two chances to take the lead. Ryan Anderson missed on a 3-point attempt and Steve Harley failed to connect on either of two free throws, giving away opportunities to take back the lead.

The Sooners finally broke the tie two minutes later with Austin Johnson’s 3-pointer to push ahead for good. Toney McCray’s bank shot off the glass while driving the lane pulled NU within one before Oklahoma used an 8-0 run over the next four minutes to put the game away. Crocker’s traditional three-point play with 1:21 remaining put OU up nine and the Sooners then hit six straight free throws and added a basket in the last 1:07 for the final score.

Nebraska finished the game hitting just 40.7 percent from the field and 34.6 percent from long range. The Sooners hit better than 46 percent, including hitting 14-of-26 shots in the second half, including 10-of-15 inside the arc. NU committed just seven turnovers and trailed on the glass by just three, 39-36, but the Huskers hurt themselves by hitting just 5-of-14 from the free throw line.

Anderson led the way for the Huskers off the bench, posting 19 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including hitting 4-of-12 3-point attempts, although he was 0-of-4 from long range in the second period. Harley added 11 points and Sek Henry had 10 points while Cookie Miller added a season-high seven assists.

Anderson came out hot in the first half, hitting 4-of-7 from 3-point range and pacing the hot Husker offense with a season-high 17 points in the opening 20 minutes. Anderson was in the zone from the first time he stepped on the court. After OU raced out to a 6-0 lead in the opening two minutes, Anderson came off the bench and quickly hit a pair of 3s to push Nebraska to its first lead of the game at 11-9 with 15:40 to play.

Anderson's strong play on the offensive end was contagious as the Huskers hit 50.0 percent from the field in the opening period, nailing 15-of-30 shots. Anderson also had the last shot of the frame, putting up an NBA-range trey with less than two seconds left on the clock. His shot just rimmed out and left NU with a 38-32 lead by the Cornhuskers.

Along with Anderson, Henry hit 4-of-5 shots and added nine first-half points. He also had a pair of assists in the first half, with his first coming on a nifty bounce pass between two defenders in the lane. Anderson cut to the basket and picked it up on the bounce, easily scoring to five NU an 18-17 lead.

Anderson hit another trey after that and helped Nebraska jump out to a 24-19 lead before the Sooners stormed back. OU scored five straight points on a Griffin basket and Willie Warren 3-pointer to knot the score.

Unlike the last time the Huskers were in Norman two years ago, when the Sooners got on a roll, NU answered throughout the opening period. The Huskers scored the next six points and jumped to its biggest lead of the opening period at 30-24. Oklahoma pulled within four points on two occasions but that's as close as they would get in the period.

Nebraska returns to action this weekend when it heads back to Lincoln for its only two-game home stand of the conference season. The Huskers open play with Oklahoma State on Saturday, Jan. 24, at 3 p.m. in a game that will be seen in select markets around the country on the Big 12 Network. NU then entertains Kansas on Wednesday, Jan. 28. Tipoff for the Huskers and Jayhawks at the Devaney Center will be 6:30 p.m. and the game can be seen on ESPN2.